Great Stuff

I am so sad that Great Stuff is now closed. San Francisco, you disappoint me. How can you allow this treasure of cheap tchotchke goodness go out of business while you allow $ 200 t-​shirt selling hipster marts to pop up all over our beloved city? I won’t go so far as to call Great Stuff a San Francisco monument, but god damn, the owner was one hell of a lovely human being and it was one of the few cheap places left, and its disarray was so charming and so quintessential San Francisco.
San Franciscans, please don’t let me down again. There are plenty of places to get your $ 200 t-​shirts and $ 5 lattes but not a lot of places where you can buy Party Rats for $ 2.

This place is no longer in business. It’s just an empty store front now, but looks like some renovating is going on inside for a future new business.
I was hoping to check out this toy store with my kids, but thankfully, there are many other fun shops around on Irving.

I was a bit confused when walking by. I wasn’t quite sure what I was walking into. The store is very messy, and definitely very different from what you’d usually find. There were a lot of random things from photo frames to incense to household goods to shelves and containers. Odd feeling, but the cashier was very nice.
I walked in confused, and walked out just as confused. Interesting place to browse, and fairly inexpensve.

Get your Great Stuff now while it lasts…
Sadly it will be closing after the holidays, but on the plus side everything is discounted until it’s all gone.
Without exaggeration, there is so much stuff in this store I don’t know how the owner knows what’s there. Still, she is always helpful and can find what you’re looking for or will freely recommend other places when she doesn’t carry something.
From kids toys, puzzles and books to adult humor, city guides, self-​help, quirky greeting cards and who-​knows-​what else, a browse through this store is engrossing — and usually makes me miss my train.

I have been shopping at this store for only 2 years and I totally love. It has journals, cards, great bling for stage and that special occassion, kitchen stuff you didn’t know you needed and THE most amazing sock collection. In short it has «great stuff’ at VERY affordable price. I just found out the store will be closing at the end of this year after a good long 10 year run. The proprietor Miss Laurel Norris is very helpful and nice
Check out this shop you will not regret it. It is a great place to get that one of a kind Birthday present and Laurel does gift certificates too.
You CANNOT leave this store without buying something for yourself or someone else.

parking is difficult in this part of the 9^th and judah.
I love this little nick nack store. they have lots of great stuff like the name of the store.
nothing here is NEEDED but you sure do WANT IT! I mean if you want to browse around for fun, you’ll end up wanting to buy something. If you want to buy someone a gift, you can definitely find it here.
The lady is a wonderful person and you should go in a meet her,.
She also sells little bags of candy, or you can order something by the pound, or the price… you know. Can I have 1 dollars worth of gummy fish?

I cannot say enough good things about the small businesses around 9^th and Irving. The lady who worked here the day I came in was very pleasant and very helpful. I bought an Eco-​friendly sea plane here for my friend, but when I came back for a schilling plane which she didn’t have, she politely pointed me to another store just one and a half block away to check if they had it! These people really look out for each other, and also, I think that they really do want you to find what you are looking for. I am an avid supporter of small businesses, and this store reminds me all time why I do.
Oh and the store itself is an awesome little random trinket store with everything from Christmas decorations to greeting cards to great toys for kids.

I stumbled upon this place that looked like a junk antique store while waiting for Holy Gelato to open for business. The smell by the doorway was a deterrent for me but I was lured in my the random things in the store. I can reassure you that it is not an antique store and I didn’t see any second-​hand items. At first I questioned how this business would stay afloat since I couldn’t imagine who would buy a good number of the items here.
Many things were items that would make good gifts. Some items are just random as heck. I was super surprised to find Burt’s Bees chap stick for $ 2.50 and $ 3, even cheaper than the Cal Student Store and Nordstrom Rack! Different sections separate the categories of items: cards, crafts, magnets, plush/​stuffed animals, personal care, male children’s toys, etc. The sale section is to the immediate right of the entrance. The bargain buys are placed outside the store and cost $ 2 each. Oddly enough, I met up with some friends who were talking about a place that sells pink mustaches (EDC attire/​costume, I’m guessing). Little did I know that it was actually right here. Coincidence? I think so.

I stumbled in here and my OCD kicked in right away because there is so much stuff — everywhere – all the way up to the ceiling — but luckily I remained calm and found so many great items — and all great quality –you can find something for yourself or a gift for anyone.
Owner is really nice although I did not see her for a bit due to all the items everywhere!

Love this Store!!! It has so many different types of items to browse through when looking for a gift for someone. And many of the items they carry are not the types you’d find at other stores.
If you want to find a gift for someone, this is a great place to look.

Great stuff, indeed.
This place is a treasure trove of magical bits. Socks and jewelry boxes and incense and toy trains. Greeting cards, roaring dinosaurs, bangles, bouncing balls, aromatic soaps, fake moustaches. I would be hard pressed to not be able to find a gift here (especially for myself).
Everything from the modestly priced mood rings to the spendier Man Ray pendant necklaces is enchanting and lovingly mashed together.
The owner (?) is always personable and approachable.
My pocketbook is lucky that it took me so long to stumble on this gem.

This place saved Christmas for me.
My only complaint would be that every time I leave I wish I could have bought more. Leave enough time to explore it properly.

SURPRISE! You’ll never know what great things you can find in this small store!
Looking for a present for any occasion? Look no further. Great stuff will never fall short of cute and handy things.
They have lots of toys, cookery, bath, you name it you can probably find it in this store!
I said enough. Check it out for yourself!
***Recommended
**Highlights: Everything, anything
**Low points: parking may be difficult, but there’s always meter parking on the street

This is the best place I’ve ever seen for finding gifts, especially for those hard to buy for people. She has such a collection of one-​of-​kind items and there’s something in the store that will appeal to everyone. Also, a great collection of earrings!
To add to that, the owner is really sweet and friendly, and the prices are reasonable. Definitely a hidden treasure and one of my favorite stores in San Francisco!

Great Stuff really does have Great Stuff. I’ve always sort of thought it was a place that sold scented stuff, like candles/soap…fake flowers, things of that sort from what I’ve seen outside in the sale section. I was wrong, this place has much much more.
When you first walk in, there is so much stuff, on the ground/​shelves/​hanging from the ceiling… it felt like my room but this place had aisles. They sell toys, books, soaps, bags, cards, cooking utensils, coupon booklets (the kind you would make at school for Mother’s Day), candy, magnets, erasers, &…KITES! I remember my friends and I were looking for a kite (September?) but couldn’t find one, since it’s more of a summer item.
The lady there is really helpful. When people asked about items that she didn’t carry (you think she would, since this place has pretty much everything), she would inform them about places nearby (some further away too) that had them.

There is indeed a lot of great stuff at Great Stuff. To a borderline claustrophobic disorder personality such as myself, it’s a little overwhelming and kind of a jumbly madness. I want to find the feather duster they no doubt carry and dust, and a professional organizer to make some sense out of the chaos.
I can appreciate Great Stuff in small doses, yesterday long enough to select a perfect stuffed animal for a friend going on day 17 at the Kaiser Hospital. I can’t wait until I get over my anxiety attack for a rematch as all of a sudden I have 2 more friends in hospital. Maybe Great Stuff and I can get along just great.

Party Rats are back in stock.
Get um while you can.
That is all :)
Trust.

I love stopping by here if I need a last-​minute gift (or something silly for myself). She has a crazy-​amazing amount of stuff packed into a fairly tiny space, and walking through the store is like a treasure hunt!
Some of the «great stuff» I’ve picked up: a sexual-​innuendo-​themed magnetic poetry kit, a stick-​on mustache variety pack (see my profile photo), a star-​shaped cookie cutter, and a really great birthday card for my dad. If that’s not great stuff, I don’t know what is.

The name don’t lie.
This place ROCKS!
EVERYTHING, I mean EVERYTHING, is carefully selected and is wicked cool.
It’s a bunch of random stuff, but gooood random stuff.
Plus prices are incredibly reasonable.
The owner is super sweet and the business is hanging in there during these tough economic times.
If you need to buy a gift for someone, a funny magnet, an awesome putumayo cd, or whatever it may be, Great Stuff will most likely have it.
I strongly urge you to go here and support this amazing local business if you can, imo, the place is totally worth it.

I hate buying gifts for babies but sometimes you have too. Great Stuff really saved my day today… I was prepared to spend all day wondering around the city looking for a gift for a one year old «baby» — yeah I’m a big baby when it comes to this kinda crap!
Hey– in my defense I am not a breeder and I don’t like gifts from others– I will buy my own dam gift… Cause and effect rule, you get me a gift … NOW I have to get you a dam gift…
OK– I do like presents.
Back to my Review…
I was able to find a great gift for my beloved friends baby boy… A great set of toy’s buy American toy makers Melissa & Doug at a great price. Now I can continue my day of self Indulgement– knowing well that the toy I bought wont kill the little one… I was worried that I would buy a sippy cup from China and it would kill the little one by the end of the weekend.

See you at the park…